Great Lakes

Great Lakes Committee

Email us: rochestergreatlakes@gmail.com

http://newyork.sierraclub.org/rochester

Lake Ontario

How Do You Save Water? Take part in our Survey

The Great Lakes Committee of the Rochester Regional Group (NY) Sierra Club invites you to participate in our efforts to protect water. But first things first! Precious is the water which is pure and clean. It refreshes the body. Water makes the earth productive with green. It supports life.

So why do we need to worry? Because we Americans use water at an astonishing rate and the clouds can not recycle the water quickly. In this region, the water held in the Great Lakes is mostly ancient water, derived from the glaciers melting. Our native rain only returns 1% annually of the water in the five Great Lakes. Our watershed is small and our population is large-Detroit, Chicago, Toronto, Buffalo, Rochester, and Syracuse.

Where do we begin? Let’s start with you, our members. I bet you have already done some things that contribute to water savings. The Great Lakes committee of the Rochester Regional Group wants to collect your current activities for saving water and also get your reasoning for your action. We want to publish these ideas on our webpage.

Below, we list several categories to get you organized.

We use water for

1) drinking and preparing food,

2) producing and processing food,

3) cleaning homes and bodies,

4) nurturing plants, animals and trees.

Here are examples.

Sinks: I switched over every sink (over a period of years) to single lever control. This allows me to set the water mix, often to middle between hot and cold.

Sinks: I do not run the water to clear the pipes of old water. I close the sink drain and run water into the basin. I use that water to begin washing my dirty hands especially if I have been digging in the dirt.

Sinks: I wet my hands and use my forearm to shut down the flow. Then with these wetted hands I work the soap and scrub out the fingernails. When I’m satisfied of cleanliness, then I use the forearm again, this time to turn the water flow back on. Finally with clean and rinsed hands, I push off the water flow.

Outdoor water: I wash my car on the lawn, not the driveway. I also use biodegradable soap. I do not want the soapy water to flow to the storm drain where it goes to the treatment plant and the lake. I want the water to serve another purpose, to let the earth filter the water and the natural critters to process the soap. The vegetation benefits from the water. And the water table underground receives renewed water. .

Toilets: I do not flush the toilets every time I empty my bladder.

Showers or tub: I collect water in a pan while I wait for the water to reach a nice temperature instead of letting it be wasted down the drain. This water could be used for cleaning the shower/tub or collected for house plants.

How do you save water? Let us know!

Email us: rochestergreatlakes@gmail.com

Find us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SierraROC

Great Lakes Lobbying Days

– Washington D.C. February 28^th and 29^th, 2012

Janet MacLeod, Great Lakes Committee

In past years other members of our Great Lakes Committee have attended the Great Lakes Lobbying Days in Washington, D.C. sponsored by the Healing Our Waters Coalition. It was a first for me. Only after having gone there can I now fully appreciate the energy and enthusiasm that others of our committee have expressed upon their return to Rochester! What creates this reaction? The opportunity to learn from seasoned environmentalists and Great Lakes groups who provide their perspectives and knowledge to the mix along with actually sitting down with New York State representatives face-to-face in their D.C. offices to discuss lake concerns with them.

The pre-lobbying training we received on day one was extremely helpful in not only informing us of all current Great Lakes legislation, but key issues to focus on in our discussions, along with a good sense of where the parties stand in general regarding Great Lakes issues. We saw representatives in small teams of usually 6 or 7 of us following a well planned meeting schedule – usually allowing about 20 to 30 minutes per visit. Our co-leader and lake property owner, Kate Kremer, was able to offer testimonial in support of the lake level plan (current Plan B, Version 7). Her opportunity to make a statement was very timely and I believe they listened.

Our first evening culminated with an impressive reception at the Canadian Embassy. And yes, I believe the bulk of our chatting related to our day lobbying, but folks had an opportunity to mingle and sample hearty hors d’oeuvres and yes, drink Canadian beer while networking.

The second day focused entirely on our meetings with representatives or their staffers. My final session was with our very own Louise Slaughter who, without skipping a beat, began talking about why the new lake level plan was necessary. As an aside, she also spoke of how disappointed she was to learn that Olympia Snow announced she was no longer running for office since she was a voice of reason.

I met some wonderful, sincere people who had traveled to D.C. – some on their own dime - from all of the Great Lakes states which in itself reinforces a sense of accomplishment and positivity. But I wondered (aloud), do we really make a difference? The unanimous response was, “yes”, we do because our presence and voices create salience for Great Lakes concerns which are competing with a myriad of others issues our legislators are asked to take a stand on.

Lake Levels and the Common Good

By Kate Kremer, Co-Chair Great Lakes Committee

The Great Lakes, including Lake Ontario, are in crisis. The human impact on Lake Ontario has grown so large that it is putting the future viability of a healthy lake at risk. A discussion of the current “lake level” issue exemplifies how we can engage in solutions that are for the common good of the environment and the people who live in it.

Since 1958, Lake Ontario has had a human-regulated water level for the purpose of protecting lake shore land owners and providing optimal water levels for the Montreal Harbor, shipping and hydroelectric power. Lake water level regulation has not historically taken into consideration the health of the ecosystem. Little fluctuation and higher water levels have destroyed many wetlands and decreased species diversity. The International Joint Commission (IJC), the Canadian and American body responsible for setting water level policy, has worked diligently for several years on this issue, eliciting local citizen and governmental agency feedback. The IJC recently proposed a new lake level plan that is being called “BV7” that addresses some of the limitations of earlier policy by restoring some of the natural flow and fluctuation. The public comment period ends June 15, 2012. (www.ijc.org/loslr/en/index.php )

This is positive progress and yet how did we continue for 50 years taking into consideration the needs of some stakeholders but not the health of the lake itself? Without an overall policy, we cannot adequately protect the rights of the public and of future generations to a healthy lake that can be used for multiple purposes by both individuals and the community. Jim Olson, the keynote speaker at our Sierra Club Forum on April 19, will discuss principles of public trust and how we can apply them to protecting our water as a common good in Western New York.

Water has always been the lifeblood of a society. Ancient cities were built along great rivers to provide for agriculture, hygiene and transportation. Peoples of ancient times were so keenly attuned to their reliance on water that they established the basic principle that waterways are owned in common and must be available for multiple uses by citizens. Jim Olson and Maude Barlow in their Report to the International Joint Commission on the Principles of the Public Trust Doctrine (November 30, 2011) trace this principle to the Codes of Rome and then to the Magna Carta and highlight it as a viable tool for protecting our water today. Olson and Barlow quote the Justinian Codes of Rome in 529 A.D.: “The following things are by natural law common to all – the air, running water, the sea and consequently the sea shore… but they cannot be said to belong to any one as private property, but rather are subject to the same law as the sea itself…” They explain how this “Public Trust Doctrine” has been adopted by the federal government and state legislatures and upheld by the courts in the United States.

In the case of the Great Lakes States, Barlow and Olson have outlined ways in which each state has laws, regulations and court cases that establish the principle of public trust related to waters. For example, they quote New York State’s Environmental Conservation Law as follows: “all the waters of the state are valuable public natural resources held in trust by this state, and this state has a duty as trustee to manage its waters effectively for the use and enjoyment of present and future residents and for the protection of the environment.” N.Y. Environmental Conservation Law section 15-1601 (McKinney 2011). The Public Trust Doctrine is a powerful tool that can provide a framework for viewing the long term health of the lake in every action that we take. It can give us the authority to fight against all actions that constitute a “taking” of the water and to fight any actions that would limit the use of the water by the public.

This is especially important as we look at these new standards recently put forth by the IJC as to how we will determine the levels of Lake Ontario for the next 50 years. There will be many interests that will speak in response to the document. The Public Trust Doctrine can help us to weigh these voices against the common good of the public to a clean and healthy lake that is sustained into the future. This will benefit all the stakeholders, public and private, and can provide common ground for moving forward.

The Great Lakes Committee meets monthly and works together to educate ourselves and the community, and provide advocacy on local and regional Great Lakes issues like the BV7 lake level plan. Come join us!

BV7 Lake Level Plan Informational Links:

The International Joint Commission (IJC) has made additional information available online about Plan Bv7, a plan for regulating water levels and flows in Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River that is currently under consideration. This information includes:

- Graphs: http://www.ijc.org/loslr/en/library/graphs.php

- A technical description of Plan Bv7: http://www.ijc.org/loslr/en/library/LOSLR%20Study%20Reports/Draft%20Plan%20Bv7%20Description.pdf

- Times and locations of Public Information Sessions: http://www.ijc.org/loslr/en/events/index.php

- Written comments about Plan Bv7 are invited and may be submitted via website: http://www.ijc.org/loslr/en/comments/index.php

- Nature Conservancy Details regarding Bv7: http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/areas/greatlakes/policy/why-plan-bv7-works.xml

GREAT LAKES COMMITTEE COLLABORATES WITH THE GIRL SCOUT TROOP J377 ON BOTTLED WATER

by Susan Stinson

The GLC is raising awareness of the harm due to proliferation of bottled water. In promoting the use of tap water, instead of bottled, we worked with a local Girl Scout troop to construct a display at the Brighton Library in February, 2009. Two GLC workshops included activities that introduced the troop to new concepts. For example:

• A blind water taste test and a survey of types of water their families used introduced the girls to the cost of bottled vs. tap water. \

• A simplified demonstration of water filtration fascinated the girls, and led them to suggest additional ideas for experimenting with water filtration. It was inspirational to see the enthusiasm of the girls in participating and learning about an issue that is part of their every day life. We felt that we provided the girls a meaningful educational activity.

The Sierra Club pamphlet, “Bottled Water”, recommends several actions to take to reduce the use of bottled water:

• AVOID using BOTTLED WATER unless absolutely necessary.

• Drink from REUSABLE METAL CONTAINERS filled with tap water when traveling.

• At public events and at home, OFFER PITCHERS of water. • Talk to your favorite restaurants about NOT offering bottled water.

• Help ensure that GOOD QUALITY TAP WATER is available to everyone in your community at an affordable price.

• Advocate for adequate funding and GOOD PUBLIC MANAGEMENT of MUNICIPAL WATER systems. For information about your local drinking water, go to Drinking Water Protection Program

• Advocate for strict state and local groundwater laws to PROTECT AQUIFERS and other water resources.

• Protect our rivers, streams, and wetlands from POLLUTION to assure high quality public water supplies.

To learn more about the Sierra Club’s bottled water campaign, visit www.sierraclub.org/cac/water .

Another good resource on water actions is http://www.sierraclub.org/committees/cac/water/bottled_water/

Meeting Times and Places

Fourth Tuesday of the Month
Place: Twelve Corners Middle School,2643 Elmwood Avenue, Library on the 2nd floor

Upcoming meetings

April 24 - David Klein from Nature Conservancy to speak on Lake Ontario Water Level Plan “BV7”.
May 22 - Charlie Knauf , Monroe County Department of Health will speak on Rochester Embayment Remedial Action Plan

Upcoming Activities

Movie “Blue Gold” (www.bluegold-worldwaterwars.com) featuring Jim Olson, Maude Barlow, and Wenonah Hauter May 4th & 5th from 12:30 to 2:30 PM at “Our Fragile World” at the Seneca Park Zoo. Film followed by discussion.
Beach Cleanups and efforts to Conserve Water – Sat April 28 9am-noon at Durand Eastman Park.
Legislative advocacy – Join us for Great Lakes Day in Albany Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Contact for more information

Co-Chairs, Kate Kremer and Robbyn McKie Holzworth rochestergreatlakes@gmail.com